To maintain an ecological balance within an aquarium, it is necessary to clean the aquarium water. Cleaning is often accomplished by filtering the aquarium water through a filter housing. In the filter housing, water enters a filter chamber, flows through a filter element, and is then returned to the aquarium. Through normal filtering operation, various particulates become trapped in the filter element, requiring the user to regularly service (i.e., maintain and/or replace) the filter element.
In most aquarium set ups, the filter housing is placed at or near a rear wall of the aquarium. When the filter element is serviced, the user removes and/or inserts the filter element from the filter housing; the filter housing remaining stationary at or near the rear aquarium wall. A common complaint is that the service procedure, and in particular the insertion of a filter element into the housing, can be difficult. Specifically, conventional filter housings often have parallel guide rails that define a slot within which each edge of the filter element must be aligned to insert the filter element. Given the rear wall location of the filter housing, alignment and insertion can be a challenge that requires finesse and practice to complete.
In general, improvement has been sought with respect to such filter devices and arrangements, generally to accommodate ease-of-use for the user.